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The Syracuse Orange take on the Virginia Cavaliers. Check out our college basketball odds series for our Syracuse Virginia prediction and pick. Find out how to watch Syracuse Virginia.
The Syracuse Orange once again look like a bubble team under coach Jim Boeheim. It is striking to note that over the past eight seasons, Syracuse has been a single-digit seed in the NCAA Tournament only once. The Orange have been a double-digit seed three times, and they have missed the NCAA Tournament several times as well. Only once were they seeded higher than 10, a No. 8 seed. The program just doesn’t deliver consistent regular seasons anymore, and the quality of Boeheim’s recruiting has clearly slipped. Yet, Boeheim is Syracuse basketball, and it’s hard to uproot him from the program. He appears intent on retiring when he wants to, and no one is going to tell him otherwise. Syracuse is 10-5 this season. The Orange have a 3-1 record in the ACC, but those three wins are against teams from the lower half of the conference. This is a game which would significantly improve the quality of Syracuse’s overall resume. A win would notably change the trajectory and expectations attached to this SU season.
Courtesy of FanDuel, here are the Syracuse-Virginia College Basketball odds.
College Basketball Odds: Syracuse-Virginia Odds
Syracuse Orange: +11.5 (-110)
Virginia Cavaliers: -11.5 (-110)
Over: 126.5 (-110)
Under: 126.5 (-110)
How To Watch Syracuse vs. Virginia
TV: ACC Network
Stream: ESPN+
Time: 5:00 p.m. ET, 2:00 p.m. PT
*Watch Syracuse-Virginia LIVE with fuboTV (Click for free trial)*
Why Syracuse Could Cover the Spread
This is a large spread, and we have seen Syracuse bother Virginia many times in recent years in the coaching battle between Jim Boeheim and Tony Bennett, the most famous (or infamous, if you’re a Virginia fan) example of this was the 2016 Elite Eight in Chicago, when Virginia was a No. 1 seed and grabbed a significant working margin, only for Syracuse to throw a press at Virginia which the Cavaliers didn’t know how to handle. Syracuse rallied and won to make the 2016 Final Four in Houston. Virginia has been able to have some success against Syracuse, but there are plenty of examples from the past several seasons of the Orange bothering the Hoos and making life difficult for them. UVA might win this game outright, but Syracuse can certainly keep this game close.
Keep in mind that Virginia has lost three of its last five games. The Cavaliers were No. 2 in the country a few weeks ago, but they have been knocked down to size with a series of inadequate offensive games. In all three losses, Virginia has failed to score more than 65 points. Syracuse’s zone defense can make Virginia’s shooters uncomfortable and create a difficult game for the Cavaliers.
Why Virginia Could Cover the Spread
The Syracuse Orange were fortunate to beat the worst team in the ACC, the Louisville Cardinals, earlier this week. Even if you did not see the game live, you might have seen the still shot or live video of the game’s final play, in which Louisville had a man wide open on the wing, running the floor in transition. If the pass had been made to the wing, Louisville probably would have had a game-winning layup just before the buzzer. The pass was not made, however, and Syracuse held on for a tenuous and fortunate 70-69 win. If Syracuse struggled with the worst team in the 15-team ACC, it will probably struggle with a Virginia team which is coming off a loss and will be very angry and motivated.
Final Syracuse-Virginia Prediction & Pick
The Virginia Cavaliers are going to come out angry and intense. They know they have to get things right after the loss to Pittsburgh. They will smother the Syracuse offense and win this game going away.
Final Syracuse-Virginia Prediction & Pick: Virginia -11.5